


Demarcations and Convergences

by ElenaCee



Series: The Consultant [2]
Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Anal Sex, Angst, Augment biology, Canon-Typical Violence, First Time, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Multiple Orgasms, Plot, Science Fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-04
Updated: 2014-12-11
Packaged: 2018-02-28 03:36:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2717417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElenaCee/pseuds/ElenaCee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Khan has become consultant to the Enterprise crew. Adjustments have to be made on all sides.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Starts where The Power of Caring left off (minus the epilogue) so this will not make much sense if you haven't read the first part of this series.
> 
> It also turns out that this part is about half as long as the first one, which sort of makes sense if you consider the first part to be the two-part pilot, and this part, the first, normal-length, episode.
> 
> Oh, and a big thank you to everyone who left kudos and comments on the first part! You guys rock!

The party in the rec room was still in full swing when Jim Kirk walked out, the closing doors shutting out the noise, leaving him and the corridor beyond in relative silence. For a minute, he just stood and allowed the moment to wash over him.

They had done it. Despite everything that had happened, and despite all the fear and mistrust on both sides, Khan was going to stay on the ship, would hopefully find a family here to replace the one he had lost. It felt like a new beginning, and Jim liked those, especially when they impacted him personally. And even more when they proved that he had been right and everyone else wrong.

This particular new beginning had left him in a bit of a legal grey zone, though. Ship's captains did have a lot of leeway, but even without knowing every paragraph of the relevant regulations, Jim was pretty sure that harboring a fugitive criminal and giving him guest rights aboard his ship was not covered by his authority. This might - and, knowing his luck, probably would - come back to bite him in the ass big time.

But not even that managed to tarnish the glow of the metaphorical bright new morning. Long ago, Jim had made it his personal mantra to never worry about the distant future. For now, he was away on a five year mission, and the next inspection of his ship and crew (and any incidental guests) was part of that distant future, and therefore not his problem right now.

Speaking of guests, where was Khan?

The Augment had left the rec room more than thirty minutes ago and never returned. Jim had waited, thinking to give him a little breathing space. After all, the last few days must have been hell for him, what with escaping from Section 31, ending up on the Enterprise barely alive, and having his brains scrambled by Spock's mind meld. Then there was the time spent at Section 31, the events leading up to getting put in cryostasis again, and the time before that...

_Come to think of it, Noonien's whole life probably has been hell for him._

But there was breathing, and there was brooding. Besides, Jim had something to show him.

"Computer, locate Khan Noonien Singh."

"Observation deck four."

That was the deck that afforded the best view of the ship, being located aft on the main saucer, overlooking the nacelles. Whoever wanted to have a look at space would probably choose one of the other observation decks. Jim thought he knew why Khan would have chosen deck four, though. _Want to have a look at your new home, huh?_

And indeed, he found the Augment in the far corner of the deck, facing the window. Khan turned his head to the side when he heard the doors open and close, but apart from that, he did not move, standing close to the viewport, back straight, arms loosely at his sides, his head turning back towards the window after a moment. "Captain." His voice did not sound inviting.

 _That sure looks like brooding._ The only problem with that was that Jim had never been good at observing non-verbal stay-away signs. "Noonien," he replied cheerfully, walking up to the Augment. "You're missing a damned good party."

There was a long pause. "I'm not in the mood." Khan still did not turn around.

Stating the obvious - another keep out sign Jim was determined to ignore. He joined him, coming to a stand next to him, also facing the viewport. "I hope it wasn't anything I said."

In his peripheral vision, he saw a slight movement as Khan threw him a look without saying anything.

They were at warp; the viewport showed the wormhole event horizon disappearing in the far distance behind the ship's nacelles - time and space being distorted by man's ingenuity. _A good place for existential contemplations,_ Jim had to admit. "I thought you were having a pretty good time talking with Carol," he said, feeling his way.

There was another pause. "I owe her," the deep voice finally replied, "for the death of her father, and for what I did to her."

Khan, apologizing? Somehow, that didn't compute.

But Khan did not give him time to make a remark to that effect. "If it is such a good party," he said, "why are you here?"

Jim wondered whether Khan was serious. _Didn't you think I'd come looking for you? I'm worried about you, you idiot._ He took refuge in a quip. "I thought maybe you'd gotten lost on your way back from the restrooms."

The Augment threw him another look, at last turning to face him.

From Khan's posture, Jim found it was impossible to tell whether the Augment expected Jim to attack him, or hug him, or do something else entirely, and he realized that this subtly wary poise had been present the whole time Jim had known him. Expecting anything, at all times. Never relaxing completely. Constantly battle-ready. Jim wondered whether this was a result of genetics, or of upbringing, or both, and if it could be made to go away with care and patience.

The Augment turned his head slightly to the side, his eyes not leaving Jim's face. "Did you think I was going to use this opportunity, when everyone's occupied with having fun and not paying attention, for nefarious purposes?"

"No," Jim said, irritated. "I thought we'd established that. I'm not here to check on you, for God's sake. Well… at least not in that way."

"In what way, then?"

"Well." Jim leaned forward, leaning his hands against the railing in front of the viewport. "It's been a rough few days for you, and I thought that maybe things were catching up with you, and that you might need… a friend." He turned his head to look at Khan as he said that.

Which was why he caught the look of surprise he had both feared and expected to see on the Augment's face. "A friend," Khan repeated, as if testing the concept. "Do you consider us to be friends?"

"Sure," Jim said easily. "We've beaten the shit out of one another and saved each other's lives. As far as I'm concerned, that covers the bases."

That earned him a raised eyebrow. "You are very quick to make friends, then. As I recall, I was still your hated enemy when I was put in cryostasis."

"Yeah, well, so we got off to a rocky start." Jim grinned. "But, seriously, as Spock might put it, I was drawing conclusions from incomplete data, and when I realized that, I changed my mind. It happens. I certainly wouldn't have gone to all that trouble for an enemy. So, yeah, of course I consider you my friend. The question is, what am I to you?"

Khan was silent for so long that Jim thought he was not going to reply. "You are something I've never encountered before, so I find myself unwilling to apply a label," he finally said. "The mere fact that you apparently trust me, despite my past actions, is hard enough to grasp." He turned back to the viewport, the swirling wormhole they were traveling through casting an eerie glow on his chiseled features as he looked out at the graceful curves of the Enterprise. "But you not only trust me; you invited me into your home, to be a part of your family, even though I did what I did to you and yours. It seems incredible, impossible. I find myself questioning the evidence of my senses. Maybe I'm still in cryostasis, and this is all a dream."

Jim reached out and put a hand on the Augment's shoulder, earning himself a quick sideways glance. "Believe it. It's real." He held the contact for a moment, giving the hard muscles under his hand a gentle squeeze before letting go.

They were alone on the observation deck, but Jim suddenly felt the need for more privacy. _Besides...._ "C'mon. I've got something to show you." Pushing away from the railing, he took a couple of steps towards the door.

Eyes hooded, Khan watched him for a moment before following. "Where are we going?"

Taking in the Augment's posture, now even more wary than before, Jim realized that Khan was not one to deal with surprises very well. _He looks like he expects to be lured into an ambush. Note to self: avoid surprise birthday parties._ "Guest quarters. I want you to see where you'll be staying." At Khan's look, he went on, "What? You didn't think I'd put you back into your cell, did you?"

"The thought had occurred when you sent your chief of security to me, asking for reinforcement measures to the brig."

Jim shook his head, not knowing whether to be amused or irritated. "For the record, I didn't send him to you. But I can see we've still got a long way to go with this whole trust thing."

 

* * *

 

Jim watched Khan walk about the small room, peering at the door, the walls, the bed, the desk and table, the computer terminal, not touching anything, moving slowly and deliberately, turning his head this way and that. It seemed as if the Augment was using his ears and nose as much as his eyes, scenting out his new surroundings. Jim wondered if he really expected this to be a trap.

Before he could turn that into a question, though, Khan faced him. "Thank you."

Jim smiled, relieved. "You _are_ welcome."

A faint answering smile appeared on the Augment's face. "I may need reminding occasionally."

"I've noticed." Their eye contact held, and Jim imagined he could feel the air between them heat up. The universe seemed to hold its breath, or maybe it was just Jim doing so.

Then Khan broke the moment by turning away. "The last celebration I took part in was held in my honor when we had successfully pacified the warring nations in what was to become my empire," he said, still without looking at Jim. "I had reached the apex of my achievements. All that remained to be done was keeping the status quo, keeping the peace." He smiled ruefully. "It worked for a while."

Jim watched him, wondering if Khan deliberately ignored the attraction between them or if he didn't notice it. But most of all, he was a little amazed at this freely offered information about the subject of Khan's brooding and wary to interrupt the flow for fear it would dry up.

"I had not thought about that time until your First Officer revived the memories during the mind meld," Khan went on, in a dreamy, almost distant voice. "Now he has, it seems like everything happened only a few hours ago. My time in the eugenics labs. My time at Section 31. My time as a ruler, as a hunted outlaw, as an agent for Marcus. I'm equally aware of all these memories. I can see Joaquin's smile in my mind as if I had last seen him only ten minutes ago, and I watch him die in front of me with equal immediacy. No more blunted edges. It took so much effort to dull the pain the last time." His voice, still almost a monotone, formed a stark contrast to the emotional impact of his words.

Looking at his profile, Jim could see glistening tracks on his cheeks.

Before Jim could react, the Augment turned fully away and took a couple of steps towards the sleeping area of his new quarters. "Leave me." His voice sounded fiercely controlled. "Please."

Following this request probably would be the sensible thing to do, Jim mused, which, of course, was why he was not going to do it. "I'm not going to let you deal with this alone, Noonien," he said, following him. "That's not how we do things in my family."

"Not even if I _ask_ you to _please_ go?"

Jim came to a halt behind him. "Look, I know you can probably get through this without anyone's help, but the point is, you don't have to. Not anymore."

There was no reaction. Khan stood unmoving, his back to Jim, silent.

 _Okay. We've been here before._ Once again interpreting the lack of further rejection as acceptance, Jim took the last step that brought his body flush with Khan's and put his arms around the unmoving Augment.

It was like hugging a stone statue. After a long moment, Khan lowered his head and took a breath. Finally, Jim could feel some of the tension begin to leave the body he held, and he tightened his arms in encouragement. Another breath followed, deeper, with a more sustained exhalation, and then Khan put his hand onto Jim's.

Neither of them said a word. Khan turned his head to the side, pulled Jim's hands away from his body with easy strength, and turned around to face him. "What is it you want from me?"

Jim smiled at him, marveling at the Augment's facial bone structure, the unusual color of his eyes, the fact that he was, once again, fully in control of himself, and the heat in Jim's body, only banked, flared up again. "I'd've thought that would be obvious."

"Wars have been fought over what some people thought was obvious," Khan said, his voice growing cold. "What's obvious to me is that you offer me a place aboard this vessel in exchange for my knowledge, abilities, and experience, and also for -" he looked Jim up and down - "... personal favors."

"What?" Jim gaped at him. "Personal favors? No!" _That_ certainly put a damper on everything. He stepped away, burying his hands in his hair in frustration. "God, no, I'm not asking you to... to _prostitute_ yourself for a place aboard my ship! How can you think that?"

Khan's face might as well have been carved from stone. "It's the only explanation that makes sense. Nobody would take the chance you are taking on me out of the goodness of their heart. That's not how life works. In any non-violent situation, everything involves negotiation, compromise, bargains, obligation for services rendered. This century's no different. Your Admiral Marcus was kind enough to demonstrate that to me."

"I am not Admiral Marcus!" Jim tried to keep a rein on his temper. "That man was a disgrace to Starfleet and deserved every bit of what you did to him." He fell silent, fury evaporating as he realized the implications. "Wait a minute, are you saying that Marcus demanded, how did you put it, 'personal favors' from you? That's what you're saying, right? I -... I don't even know what to say to that. That's sick. I wish he was still alive so _I_ could kick his head in."

He looked at Khan, who was still doing his stone statue impression.

"I can't believe this. That is disgusting." He took a step towards the Augment. "Look, I'm sorry for what he did. That should never have happened to you. That is not how we do things."

Khan lowered his head, peering at him with the wary expression Jim was beginning to hate seeing there. "Then, what? What do you want from me?"

"I don't want anything from you, not in that way." Jim took a few steps back and forth, gesturing as he searched for the right words. "So, this is what you think, that you staying here also comes with some sort of price tag?"

The Augment's silence was answer enough.

"God!" Jim shook his head, pacing some more before coming to a halt in front of Khan. "No. No, it doesn't. No price tag. No obligations. I've _invited_ you, no strings attached. I realize that your experience so far makes this hard to believe, but this is how things are done on my ship: You're a guest, in a consultant capacity. We both agreed on how this thing will work, in front of witnesses. There are no subsidiary arrangements."

Now, it was Khan's turn to frown in confusion. "You made your desire for me clear almost from the moment I came onboard. You certainly want me now. I assumed..." He let the sentence trail off.

Jim refused to blush. "Well, yeah, that's because I find you very attractive. I don't deny that. But I'd've invited you even if I didn't. And let me make one thing absolutely clear: You can stay, for as long as you like, with no other obligations except for what we agreed on, even if my attraction for you is completely one-sided because I'm just not your type, or if you don't swing that way, or whatever. Because what I feel for you and your status aboard this ship are two different things that don't impact each other. Do you understand?"

"Yes." Khan's austere features relaxed by a degree. "You've made it quite clear."

"Whew." Jim grinned. "Okay. I think now I understand your remark about wars being fought over the obvious."

Khan nodded, frowning sharply. "I should have known better than so assume. It's a common, _stupid_ mistake with often disastrous consequences, and not just in diplomacy."

He said it with so much self-contempt that Jim wanted to tease him about it, but the Augment's whole demeanor still was so full of tension that he decided to back off. _Even though you haven't told me yet if I'm alone in this attraction thing or not._

But Khan gave him no time to bow out on his own. "My mind must be more strongly affected by the meld than I realized. If you'll excuse me, Captain, I need some time alone to rectify this."

To his own surprise, even Jim Kirk was capable or realizing when the timing was off. "Sure. Khan. Just remember, sometimes talking about things helps. It really does." He turned to go. "You know where to find me."

Khan did not reply.

Shrugging mentally, Jim showed himself out, not knowing what to feel. A part of him was acutely disappointed that they weren't having passionate sex right now; another part recognized the fact that the ghost of Marcus still lingered, at least for Khan, which probably would have spoiled everything, and a third part was worried about the fact that the Augment had not seemed attracted to Jim in the slightest.

_Maybe he really doesn't swing that way. Maybe he doesn't do sex at all. Maybe Augments generally have no use for sex, what with having been artificially created. I've got to ask Bones about this._

He was saved from making the decision whether he wanted to rejoin the party or not by being paged to the bridge.

 

* * *

 

"Doctor."

Leonard McCoy looked up from where he was checking his dwindling supplies of hangover cure, fully expecting to see another pale, drawn face showing the effects of too much Saurian Brandy. Instead, he found himself looking at the immaculately groomed features of their newly appointed resident consultant. "Khan."

"Do you have a minute?"

Leonard nodded at the seat in front of his desk. "Be my guest. You don't look like you're here for my patented hangover cure, and I doubt you can even get ill. So, what can I do for you?"

The Augment sat, eyes never leaving him, in that unblinking, impassive way of his. "I don't require your professional services, no."

"Social call, then?"

"You might call it that," Khan said slowly. He had not blinked yet, which Leonard was beginning to find disconcerting. "We didn't really have a chance to talk during the... party, and I found myself regretting this." He inclined his head, finally blinking once. "I notice you're still afraid of me."

 _Okay. Direct and to the point._ Leonard could do that. "Well, yeah. You're a killing machine, and you could probably crush my skull here and now without even getting up from your seat. I'd be stupid not to be afraid of you."

"And yet you trust me not to harm you."

Leonard grimaced. "Spock trusts you, and he now knows you better than anyone alive, and that's good enough for me. For now." He took in the Augment's relaxed posture. "And I notice that you're not afraid of me anymore."

A quick flash of a smile. "I conquered my fear. Conquering, after all, is what I do best."

Leonard blinked.

An eyebrow rose. "That was supposed to be a joke."

He smiled. "Well, how about that. Turns out you're not better at everything after all."

That earned him a smile that actually reached Khan's eyes, and Leonard found himself relaxing as the persistent sense of otherness he picked up from the Augment momentarily disappeared. _Is this what Jim sees in him?_ he wondered.

"Be that as it may," Khan said, "I'm here for strategic reasons, since strategizing is another thing I do best."

This time, Leonard picked up on the dry undertone, and he rewarded the attempted joke with another smile. _He's actually trying to be friendly_ , Leonard realized. _If the guy weren't a living weapon, that'd almost be adorable._

"I need to know where you stand,"Khan went on, "and whether or not you'll end up as an opponent once a certain development comes to pass. And as one of the captain's most trusted friends, your approval matters."

It took Leonard a minute to sort this one out, and then he jumped to the first conclusion that came to his mind. "Are you asking me for my blessing for when you seduce Jim?" he blurted.

Khan raised his eyebrows. "Interesting conclusion, but, yes. Also interesting that you should assume it's me doing the seducing."

"You mean it's not?" Leonard mentally backed up two steps. "Wait, Jim's been seducing you, and yet we're talking about a 'development' that's not yet 'come to pass'?" He grinned. "He's slipping."

"I've been resisting," Khan stated with dignity. "Jim's technique is not to blame. Mata Hari herself could not seduce me if I do not wish to be seduced."

This was too intriguing for Leonard not to get sidetracked by. "You mean you can just switch everything off downstairs?" _Makes sense,_ Leonard supposed, _and would be a great advantage._ Many great warriors of fact and fiction had fallen to the wiles of the seductress. Augments, designed to be the ultimate warriors, would of course have to be immune to that.

"Mind over matter," Khan confirmed, still using that supercilious tone of voice.

"How does that work?"

Khan leaned back on his chair, obviously completely unfazed by the topic's potentially embarrassing nature. "It's a conscious decision. It's not so much that I switch things off rather than the other way around. It's switched off by default. I have to consciously wish to engage in sex, otherwise the required biochemical and physiological processes simply remain inactive, no matter the stimulation."

"No matter the stimulation?" Leonard echoed, feeling himself blush from the mental images that his mind came up with in response to those words.

Of course, Khan noticed his reaction, and he was amused by it, the bastard. "Oh yes." He lowered his voice. "No matter what, or where, or how, or for how long, or whether verbal, visual, or tactile. Nothing will affect me. I'll perceive it all, of course, but it will not arouse me in the slightest."

Well, the things he said and the way he said them certainly were arousing Leonard, but he still was too intrigued to change the subject. "That sounds dangerous, physiologically. Wouldn't there need to be some release at some point?"

"No. There's no build-up, thus no need for release, not for years. But once I do decide to have sex, the cycle must run its course, at its own pace, usually several times in a row. Stopping it or even slowing it down is almost impossible, and extremely unpleasant. And, yes, probably physiologically damaging. So, I don't try to stop it. It's all, or nothing."

Leonard digested that. _Why is he telling me all this? Oh._ "Does Jim know what he's letting himself in for?"

Another approving look. "Not yet. From what I've learned about him, I doubt if knowing about this beforehand would detain him."

Leonard grinned. "You bet it wouldn't. On the contrary, it'll make him even more hell-bent on seeing it for himself. He likes playing with fire." He grew serious. "But you should still tell him. If you really can't stop, and are so much stronger than him, then he has a right to know." _If you slip the leash and end up raping him, I'll kill you._ He did not say it aloud.

Khan still picked up on his thought. "Harming him is the last thing I want to do, so lower your hackles, Doctor. I'll let him know, if only to reassure him why his attempts to seduce me have failed."

Leonard laughed softly. "Poor Jim, probably thinks he's broken."

"He knows my reasons for resisting," Khan replied enigmatically. "For now. I'm here to see to it that you are fully informed, and to make sure this will not disrupt the ties he has with you. I've caused enough destruction."

 _He's really trying,_ Leonard realized, touched. "Well, don't worry about that," he said gruffly. "Jim always does as he damned well pleases, whatever the hell I may think about it. Besides, our friendship has survived worse than him getting involved with an ex-tyrant."

Khan looked at him, apparently deciding that this was as close to receiving Leonard's approval as he was likely to get. "Thank you," he said formally, rising.

Leonard watched him get up and rose to his feet as well. "No, I'd like to thank you. For being so open about things. I admit I'm still struggling with this whole situation, and that really helps."

The Augment lowered his head in the peculiar trick he had of gazing up at you from his superior height. "It's not easy for me, either, but, as they say, anything worth having is worth fighting for. And nothing's better for the circulation than a good fight."

He nodded at Leonard and walked out, leaving Leonard a little bit bemused, a little bit worried, and a little bit reassured.

* * *

 


	2. Chapter 2

Spock took his place at the briefing room table at the captain's right-hand side, steepling his hands in front of him and watching patiently as the human crew members found their seats, chatting about non-essentials and generally being, well, human.

The facts that would be required from him for this briefing were neatly aligned in his mind, a part of it busy projecting probabilities. Normally, he would have predicted, with a confidence of more than 98 percent, that this briefing would end with the formation of a landing party with the captain on it. This time, however, the presence of Khan Noonien Singh at the briefing introduced a confounding factor that Spock found himself unable to accommodate with any degree of confidence.

The Augment gave no sign of self-consciousness or nervousness at what must be a new situation for him, but then again, Spock had not expected him to. What he did expect was him weighing in on any decision-making, without being able to tell what shape this input would have. Geared towards caution? Geared towards aggression? Past events had shown Khan to be a master strategist, so anything was possible. Spock made a mental note to ask him to join him in a game of chess sometime.

"Right," the captain opened the briefing, interrupting Spock's probability projections. "So, Beta Aurigae III. Charted seven months ago. Unexplored by any Federation vessels so far. Automated reconnaissance seems to show that it holds a civilization that might benefit from Federation contact, so we were sent to evaluate. This is the surveillance footage, sent back by Recon Drone Amy three weeks ago, that prompted this mission."

The main viewscreen began to show recordings depicting a thriving, technology-based civilization. Spock was familiar with them, so he observed the crew's reaction instead.

Dr. McCoy first watched attentively when the humanoids themselves were shown - almost human-looking except for their fur-like hair and varying dark and light skin pigmentation. Then, McCoy looked increasingly bored as the footage focused on the technology the beings had achieved. The inverse was the case for Mr. Scott, whose eyebrows rose a few times in response to some of the discoveries the images depicted. And Noonien Singh's expression remained impassive throughout, taking in all the information shown with equal attentiveness.

"And this," the captain resumed when the file ended, "is what our own surveillance from an hour ago shows. And before you ask, yes, those are images from the same geological area of the planet."

Again, Spock chose to watch his fellow crew members. As he had expected, their faces showed varying degrees of surprise, interest, and confusion as they watched the images of undisturbed flora, where the recordings from drone Amy had shown widespread cities and a dense network of transport ways.

"That's not possible," McCoy said. "There must be some mistake."

"There is no mistake," Spock said, noting that his projection of McCoy's reaction had been 100 percent accurate. "Amy's transmissions were verified by two independent receivers. And I myself conducted our surveillance."

"Is there any evidence of some sort of catastrophe that could have caused this?" Mr. Scott enquired. "Radiation, or something?"

"No," Spock said. "The atmosphere is pure, no pollutants, no chemical residues, radiation levels normal."

"It's like they never existed," McCoy said, sounding awed. "Everything is just... gone."

The captain looked at each of them in turn. "Theories, gentlemen? Spock?"

"Available data yields none that is not pure speculation," Spock was forced to admit. "The lack of evidence of any sort of destructive influence rules out the most obvious explanations. That is, provided that our long-range sensors have not missed any evidence. This can only be ascertained by more data gathered on the planet's surface."

At the captain's look, McCoy waved his hand and shook his head to indicate that he had nothing to contribute to the discussion.

"Scotty?"

"Well, Captain, they had achieved atomic power, advanced hydrogen propulsion, and even quite an impressive level of microcircuitry. We know from other civilizations and from our own past that this sort of technological advancement sometimes ends in, well, accidental self destruction. But seein' as there's nothing to support that theory, like background radiation or evidence of any sort of destruction, I'm fresh out of ideas."

The captain nodded, then turned to their newly appointed resident consultant. "Mr. Singh?"

"If they have not destroyed themselves, then they must have been destroyed from off-planet. Some sort of fast-acting, global epidemic, followed by an equally fast kind of terraforming that yielded this vegetation."

Spock raised one eyebrow. His probability projections had not foreseen this theory.

McCoy, meanwhile, looked at the Augment with an expression that Spock would term comical, if he were inclined to that sort of fanciful description. "That's not possible. I'll grant you the epidemic, but trees, even alien ones, just take a little bit longer than three weeks to grow to that size. Also, what happened to the buildings, the roads, the whole infrastructure?"

"Genetic manipulation," Khan said, "and a kind of terraforming we have not encountered before. If I were the ruler of a species that colonizes other planets as its main expansion strategy, those are the areas I would promote research and development for. And this would be my strategy: First, wipe out the target planet's indigenous sentient population with a disease tailor-made for their specific immunological weaknesses, then transform their infrastructure using bacteria that eat their refined materials and thus make them available for a new ecosystem, and lastly, seed genetically manipulated plants that will grow within a reasonable time while producing the air that my own species needs to live. A whole planet conquered within a few weeks, and without risk of loss of lives on my side."

There was a pause. Spock, who was familiar with the Augment's thought processes from the mind meld they had shared, naturally did not feel the almost shocked astonishment that the expressions of the three other humans showed. He knew that it was second nature to Noonien Singh to constantly anticipate a variety of hostile situations and to mentally provide countermeasures, so it was no surprise that he should view this scenario from a warlord's viewpoint as well.

"Glad you're on our side," Dr. McCoy finally said.

"If this is, in fact, what happened," the captain resumed, "and this conquering species does exist, then they could become a threat. We must identify them and report back to Starfleet before they enter Federation territory. If they haven't already."

Spock felt compelled to interject. "It is also possible that there is another explanation, one of which we cannot conceive. There is the possibility that evidence for that other explanation exists on the planet's surface."

"Yes," the captain agreed. "We'll take a look around to make sure, also to find any evidence for Mr. Singh's colonists. I'll be leading a landing party. Spock, you'll have the con."

Spock nodded, having anticipated this. Apparently, Khan's presence did not impact his statistical projections significantly in that respect.

"If the situation on the planet is indeed the result of a hostile act," the Augment spoke up, "then 'my colonists' may already be down there taking possession of the planet, and not in the mood to welcome possible competitors."

The captain looked at him. "That's why I'm taking a full security detail."

"Let me come with you."

"I can't do that. This is potentially a first contact situation, and you're not trained for that."

Khan audibly exhaled through his nose. Even without touching him, Spock could feel the frustration the Augment was fairly radiating. " _Regulations_ , again. My _recommendation_ as your _consultant_ is that you take advantage of my experience with potentially hostile situations by letting me accompany you. _Captain_."

The captain remained unimpressed by the aggression implied in the repeated emphases. "Negative, _Khan_. I'll need you to come in if anything goes wrong. Mr. Spock, coordinate with him and consider his input. I'll report in every fifteen minutes."

"Yes, Captain," Spock acknowledged.

Khan, looking somewhat mollified, nodded. "Very well."

"Thank you, gentlemen," the captain concluded the briefing. "Dismissed."

 

* * *

 

Spock was contemplating human idioms. How was one supposed to cut tension with a knife? Tense filaments, yes. But the metaphorical tension that humans were wont to build up amongst themselves? It was metaphorical, and thus not subject to anything as concrete as a knife.

But he had to admit that the idiom was apt. The tension currently on the bridge was indeed almost palpable.

"Hail the landing party again," he ordered Nyota.

She had anticipated his order and shook her head. "I just did. Still no reply. I can't lock onto their communicators at all. No carrier signal."

Noonien Singh, who had walked onto the bridge sixteen point three minutes ago with the air of someone who felt fully justified to be there, stepped up next to Spock. "They should have reported in six minutes ago. There is nothing between us and the planet's surface to block radio transmissions. It's extremely unlikely that all communicators should fail simultaneously. Ergo, something went wrong."

"An accurate summary," Spock commented. A whole array of probabilities was developing.

The Augment looked at him, both eyebrows raised.

Spock refused to be drawn. "Yes, Mr. Singh?"

"I'm wondering why you're not at this moment ordering the transporter room to input the last known coordinates of the landing party and sending me down."

"Standard procedure dictates -"

"Standard procedure ceased to apply to the situation when it became clear that this is not a standard situation," Khan hissed at him, showing teeth. "The landing party is in trouble, possibly has been for twenty minutes, which is a lot of time during a hostile situation. The only logical thing to do, despite the rules you are so fond of, is for you to send me down _now_."

One of Spock's projected probabilities had once again become a certainty, but he refused to feel satisfaction because of it. "I concur. But you are not going without back-up."

The Augment threw him a supercilious look. "Anyone you send along with me will only slow me down."

"I doubt that," Spock said dryly. "Mr. Sulu, you are in command. Inform the transporter room that there will be two persons beaming down to the captain's last known position." He nodded at Khan, taking in the Augment's expression of surprise and satisfaction. "Shall we?"

 

* * *

 

Spock knew, as soon as the transporter effect released them, that something was very wrong with this planet.

High-pitched shrieking filled the air; the ground vibrated, and the sound of breaking branches could be heard. Khan, next to him, whirled in a perfect circle and pointed; at the same moment Spock, too, discerned the source of the ruckus, and together, they threw themselves into the cover afforded by a majestic tree trunk - just in time, as it turned out, to evade a gigantic creature running past - on two legs; feathered, sporting a beak issuing those shrieks.

Spock found himself forced to re-evaluate the situation.

"Did the probe report this kind of wildlife?" Khan asked, already on the lookout for more of these beings.

"No, it did not," Spock said. "That creature looked like the local equivalent of a dinosaur. Amy reported the dominant phylum to be mammalian, which means that, according to the basics of phylogenetic evolution, there should be no coexisting dinosaurs. This suggests a major upheaval within the planet's fauna."

Khan frowned, looking offended. "No spacefaring terraforming species would profit from infesting their new home with predatory dinosaurs. Even sentient reptilian life forms would gain nothing from that. My projected scenario has just been invalidated."

Spock raised an eyebrow at him. "I believe the appropriate Earth expression is, 'join the club'."

That earned him a scowl followed by a quick smile before Khan went back to using his augmented senses to guard them.

Pulling out his communicator, Spock hailed the Enterprise, eyebrows rising when there was no response.

"Try the captain," Khan suggested without turning around.

Spock was already doing so. A burst of static from the speaker had them both wincing and Spock reaching for his tricorder. "Significant natural magnetism, not detectable from orbit, due to extensive magnetized iron deposits, causing disturbances in parts of the EM spectrum. Needless to say that this was not reported by Amy, either."

Now Khan did turn to him. "So you're saying that the iron that was used for construction is back in the ground, with no traces of the constructions themselves left. I'm beginning to think that McCoy was correct and this is all the result of some mistake. It really seems as if the probe reported data from another planet entirely."

"No," Spock said. "The thought had occurred. The data was double-checked. There is no mistake."

Khan's expression remained skeptical, but he dropped the subject. "Looks like the landing party crossed through here in this direction," he said, pointing into the dense foliage.

The tricorder scan confirmed it. Spock nodded in acknowledgement and set off in the indicated direction, Khan moving along almost in perfect unison.

They progressed quickly, managing to avoid the larger life forms with the help of tricorder-assisted acute senses. The forest was as close to a jungle as it could get in this climatic zone, and it teemed with life. There were insects of all descriptions. Small lizards climbed tree trunks, ran across and through the dense grass that grew to impressive heights wherever the trees allowed the sunlight to reach the ground, and even winged and feathered beings that looked almost, but not quite, like Earth birds flapped through the air.

One thing neither of them saw was mammals of any kind.

Spock, keeping one eye on his tricorder and the other on the, to him, non-existent path before them, was busy developing an explanation that accounted for the absence of mammals now where a full complement of the usual mammalian species had existed only three weeks ago while at the same time explaining the presence of all these new reptilian species that had not.

"Watch out!" Khan shouted, interrupting Spock's thoughts, just as a shadow blotted out the sun filtering through the leaves.

Spock leaped to the side, tucking in arms and head to roll across rocky ground, just barely evading the taloned feet of a huge, winged dinosaur. The being screeched in fury as its prey escaped, and then again as Khan landed a punch to its belly. Lying on his back, Spock produced his phaser and shot it point-blank, merely eliciting another screech before the being flapped its massive wings, gained altitude and flew off.

"This doesn't bode well for the captain and his team," Khan said, squinting in the direction where they assumed the landing party to be. "These things are resistant to phaser fire, and there are many of them."

Meanwhile, Spock regarded the smashed and dark display of his tricorder. "We have another problem," he stated calmly, refusing to acknowledge the fear that was beginning to lap at the corners of his mind. How were they supposed to find the landing party in this wilderness without the help of the device?

Khan nodded towards a part of the undergrowth that, to Spock, looked unremarkable. "They left a visible trail, and as long as we're conscious, we'll have our senses to warn us of danger. Let's just take care not to end up as a meal for one of these Jurassic Park denizens." He set off, moving lightly and economically.

Frowning, Spock followed him. "I assume that is some sort of cultural reference," he said, glad for the distraction. No, not glad - of course not. His control was absolute.

"Series of movies that was popular in the early 21st century," Khan supplied, voice low, eyes everywhere. "Scientist manages to create dinosaurs from fossilized mosquitoes that contain dinosaur DNA. They end up becoming quite the threat. I found it interesting for its aspects of genetic manipulation, even if the science was rather badly mangled."

Oh. Fiction. Spock found himself losing interest, which of course meant that his mind went back to its uncontrolled speculating about the captain's possible fate. He would need meditation to rectify this.

Khan abruptly came to a halt and knelt down to run his fingers over the grass. They came away red. "Someone's injured," he pronounced, sniffing his fingertips. "That is almost certainly human blood." The Augment's expression was tight, fiercely controlled.

Spock briefly closed his eyes, willing the thought that crossed his mind to go away. This did not mean that it was Jim's blood. Assuming that was premature and illogical.

But neither did he question the statement. From his mind meld with Khan, he was aware of the multilayered sensory world the Augment lived in, and that his sense of smell was as acute as his hearing and his vision. "Let us make haste," Spock said, forcing his voice to sound dispassionate. No, he was not worried. He was not.

"Seconded." Khan fell into a jog, effortlessly following the trail that Spock was only beginning to learn to discern. "The blood has not dried yet. They can only be minutes away."

At that moment, a chorus of shrieks became audible from the direction they were moving towards. They exchanged a glance. Even without the benefit of being a touch telepath, Spock could feel that their single thought was identical.

_Jim._

And then they ran.

 

* * *

 

"How is he?" Jim asked Chief Giotto, who had just rejoined his captain at their defensive line.

"Not good, Sir," Giotto replied from his new position, face down in the grass, hidden behind a fallen log. "Lost a lot of blood. And still no contact with the ship."

Jim bit his lip. The two giant reptiles he had been watching were not making any threatening moves at the moment, but they knew that this would change eventually. The things circling in the air far above did not look as if they were here by accident, either. "Found out what's causing the interference yet?"

"Magnetism, apparently," Giotto said. "No clue where it's coming from, though."

They both fell silent as the dinosaurs they were watching began to move towards them.

"Shit!" Jim cursed under his breath. "Phasers to highest setting, and concentrate fire on the things' heads. We've got to keep them away from our camp!"

It worked, for about ten seconds. The giant beasts actually stopped in their tracks, shaking their heads, looking slightly dazed. And then, with a shriek, they charged.

"Hold your ground!" Jim yelled, firing and firing, Giotto next to him doing the same. The ground literally trembled beneath them; the things approached frighteningly fast, they blotted out the daylight -

Something broke through the undergrowth at a dead run, threw itself at one the the creatures' heads; there was an ear-splitting scream and a roar.

Before Jim could process what exactly had happened, a second person - because that's what they were - reached the other dinosaur, cutting right across its path, and shooting a phaser beam straight into one eye. There was another shriek.

The creatures stumbled to a halt, about ten yards away from Jim's and Giotto's position.

Spock rolled to a stop, came up on one knee, and fired again.

Khan let himself drop down from where he had been gouging out one of the creatures' eyes with his bare hand.

And Jim, not to be outdone, fired his phaser first at one, then at the other reptile.

The shrieks tapered off to a confused whining as the two dinosaurs turned away and lumbered off into the undergrowth. And Jim found himself confronted by two pairs of eyes, one brown, one aquamarine, as Spock and Khan inspected him, ignoring Giotto completely.

Before Jim could get a word out, Khan said, "It's not him." He sounded inexplicably relieved.

"Obviously," Spock concurred.

"Of course it's me," Jim said, confused. "Who else would it be?"

Spock straightened his uniform in that way he had when he was embarrassed and struggling not to show it. "Captain. How fortuitous to find you unharmed."

_Oh_. "I'm fine, Spock."

Khan, next to him, was looking past Jim's shoulder at Giotto, then directed his gaze at Jim. The Augment's face briefly relaxed into a smile, and he made an aborted motion with both hands that Jim was almost, but not quite, sure would have been a hug if Khan hadn't decided against it at the last minute. "Someone has been injured," Khan stated.

"We need to find a way to contact the ship," Spock interjected. "Captain, I suggest that we reconvene at camp, while -"

"I will guard the perimeter," Khan cut in.

Spock nodded.

_These two have obviously found common ground._ Jim, scrambling to keep up, said, "Well done with those things, and... yeah, let's do that. Peterson is back at camp, stable for the moment but losing ground. Sure you'll be okay out here, Noonien?"

He was favored with a cool gaze and the ghost of a smile. "Of course. Jim."

Jim turned to go.

"Mr. Spock..."

Turning back, Jim watched Khan reach out a hand to the Vulcan, staring intently into Spock's eyes.

After just a moment's hesitation, Spock took it. They held the contact, both of hands and of eyes. Jim got the distinct impression that some sort of silent communication was going on.

Finally, Spock nodded, and let go.

"What was that all about?" Jim asked as he and Spock were moving towards the camp, followed by Giotto guarding their backs.

Spock hesitated.

"C'mon, Spock," Jim wheedled, ducking underneath the branches of what looked like a conifer. "I know you're a touch telepath. Making dirty telepathic jokes behind your captain's back?"

That got a reaction, at least. "No jokes, Captain."

"Then, what?"

Silence, only broken by the sound of the three of them stamping through the undergrowth. Up ahead, the faces of two of their security detail guarding the camp were coming into view.

Jim raised an arm to announce himself before someone confused him with a raptor. "You know I'm not going to drop this, Spock, so you might as well just tell me."

"Very well." Spock did not quite sniff, but his tone of voice nevertheless made it clear that he did not appreciate Jim's tactics. "Since you insist, Mr. Singh asked me to keep you safe. I also believe he threatened me with bodily harm if I failed."

Jim grinned. "You 'believe'?"

"Indeed. That part of the communication was decidedly non-verbal."

Jim kept grinning. He thought he could imagine what that might have felt like. "Well," he said, just as they were reaching the rest of the landing party, "for the record, while I appreciate the thought, I'm perfectly capable of keeping myself safe."

"Empirical evidence would disagree, Sir," Spock said dryly.

 

* * *

 

Spock sat on the ground, surrounded by parts of several communicators, and was taking another device apart, while Jim and the rest of the security detail were watching the surrounding foliage. The injured Peterson lay cradled in the arms of Lieutenant Jakande, still stable, still holding on. In the distance, the occasional sounds of reptilian life forms encountering an augmented human life form and being the worse for it could be heard.

"How's it going, Spock?" Jim wanted to know.

"Combining the power cells now, Captain. According to my calculations, this should yield enough transmitting power to penetrate the magnetism in the atmosphere. Once the Faraday cage is completed, the transmitting communicator will be shielded from magnetism and we will be able to receive transmissions as well."

Jim nodded. He hoped Khan was holding up well out there, but having seen the Augment fight, he was probably the last person on this team Jim had to worry about. What did worry him was the increasing number of volant reptiles circling above them. If they decided to attack the camp from above, their ground perimeter would be useless. "How long?"

"Seven to eight minutes, Sir. Provided that the power is sufficient."

"Well, you calculated it, right?"

"Indeed."

Jim grinned. "So, eight minutes max, and we'll be home in time for dinner."

Later, he wondered if maybe he shouldn't have said that. One minute, he was watching Spock fiddle with microcircuitry, and the next, there was shouting, screeching, and a roar from what could only be Khan in full battle mode; something slammed into him, rolling him across the grassy ground, letting him go while his head was still spinning; the sounds of phaser blasts and yells and more screeching.

Jim's senses cleared enough for him to see one of the flying things being dragged to the ground by Khan hanging on to one wing. Jakande sat bent over, shielding Peterson with her body while laying down cover fire. More phaser blasts were issuing from the rest of the team. Spock, keeping his head down, continued working. Jim found his own phaser and joined the fray, providing cover fire for Spock.

Fortunately, it was very easy to tell friend from foe in this battle. The fact that the reptiles were not very impressed by their phasers was more than made up for by Khan's strength and agility and the fact that drops from a great height did not harm the Augment, which rendered the reptiles' strategy of grabbing their prey and dropping it effectively useless.

The first time Jim witnessed that, though, it almost gave him a heart attack. Khan was grabbed by clawed feet, carried up high into the air. Somewhere above the tree tops, he must have done something to the dinosaur carrying him; there was a screech, and they both crashed through the branches and down onto the ground. Khan rolled to a stand, eyes shining, hair disheveled; the reptile lay dead, its neck broken. And before Jim got his mouth to work sufficiently for saying anything, the Augment was off again, defending Spock by flinging himself at another approaching beast intent on grabbing the Vulcan, offering himself up instead to be carried off.

He looked, Jim decided, like he was actually having fun.

Said fun was cut short a minute later by the transporter effect taking them and depositing them right in front of McCoy.

"Finally," the ship's surgeon grumbled. "You lot never call, you never write. It's sickbay for you, ladies and gentlemen, and not a word out of any of you."

 

* * *

 

McCoy immediately took charge of Ensign Peterson, grumbling about unpredictable wildlife and unreasonable beaming straight into danger. Fortunately, Peterson was the only one injured, apart from Khan, who had obviously had the time of his life. The Augment was battered, his clothes torn in several places and covered in blood from wounds that had long since healed. None of this dampened his high spirits that continued unabated even through the inevitable medical post-mission checkup and all of Bones' poking and prodding.

Jim was amused to notice that, even when they were all convened for de-briefing an hour later, the Augment apparently was still riding the post-battle high. It showed itself in little signs - his movements were a little quicker, his posture a little less rigid; his breaths were a little deeper, his gaze more intense. He appeared, Jim decided, predatory.

Jim liked that.

He gave the de-briefing its due attention, but through it all, he was aware of Khan in a way he had not been before. It was heady, exciting. A new doorway lay beckoning before him; one he was determined, this time, to walk through.

_That is, as soon as I make sure he's actually interested in me._

But first, ship's business. Always ship's business first.

"So, theories?" he said, opening the de-briefing. "What happened on Beta Aurigae III?"

"We only know what did not happen, Captain," Spock replied thoughtfully. "There was no attack from outside."

"Yes," Khan agreed, sounding disappointed. "No weapon or effect that I can think of will selectively eradicate all mammalian species while creating new reptilian ones, all within three weeks."

_No mammals,_ Jim thought, surprised, and fully focused now. What with all the running and hiding they had done down on the planet, that fact had completely passed him by.

"So," McCoy interjected, "what'd they do? Press a button that eradicated all mammals, and themselves along with 'em? And all they had built?"

Jim grinned, but, to his surprise, Spock seemed to give this serious thought.

"They would have had to eradicate just one species to account for everything we observed," the Vulcan said, "a species probably existing in a very limited geological area. No doubt an accident." He paused, giving everyone at the table the chance to follow his train of thought, which, Jim considered, was a little ambitious of him.

Khan, of course, smiled suddenly, looking at Spock with evident respect. "The ancestor of all mammalian species. They discovered time travel. They traveled back in time, and accidentally made their own existence impossible by destroying their distant ancestor species."

There was another pause while the mere humans at the table digested this. "Is that possible?" Scott said. "I mean, wouldn't that just create an alternate timeline? We do know that we, too, are the product of another timeline, right? The one Nero created."

"This is the only timeline that exists, as far as we are concerned. Everyone who died due to Nero's actions are and remain dead even though they existed in the normal time line. The Aurigaeans have never existed in this timeline. They are gone." Spock sounded solemn, no doubt also remembering the fate of his own home planet.

"So, what should I put in my report?" Jim wanted to know. "This is all just a theory, right? Maybe some of the natives are still alive somewhere in past and will eventually manage to change everything back?"

"If they did," Khan said, deep voice sounding even deeper, "we would be seeing the results now. Whatever they did or did not do happened millions of years ago. It's done."

McCoy frowned. "Wait, that's it? They're just gone?"

Spock raised his eyebrows at him. "Yes."

Jim sighed. "Well. I'll reclassify Beta Aurigae III from inhabited by sentient beings that might benefit from Federation contact to uninhabited and dangerous due to indigenous wildlife. Not often that something like that happens. Dismissed."

Everyone rose to their feet. Jim's eyes found Khan's.

The Augment waited until the others had left, then he approached, moving with the contained strength of a hunting cat. "Captain. I believe we have unfinished business," he said, the look in his eyes leaving no doubt as to his meaning. His voice seemed to have aquired another subharmonic component. And _there_ was the attraction Jim had not sensed before, in spades.

Jim felt like he was getting blasted by hot hair. _Pheromones, clearly._ "Indeed we have, Khan," he said, breathless. "Let's do something about that. My quarters, now."


	3. Chapter 3

Jim felt that they were done with words. He certainly was. As soon as the doors to his quarters closed behind them, he fairly threw himself at Khan, intending to use his mouth for something that was not talking for the next half hour or so. Both their mouths, preferably, and at the same time.

The Augment, however, had other plans. "Wait," he said, catching Jim's shoulders and easily holding him at arm's length, "wait."

Jim groaned. "Noonien, if we're going to have another discussion now, I'll spontaneously combust."

"No discussion, Jim," Khan rumbled. From this close, Jim could see that his pupils were blown so wide that they almost swallowed the irises. "It's been a long time. I'm not quite human. You should be aware that, once that switch is thrown, I won't be able to stop. And... I don't want to hurt you."

Those words and the images they conveyed had a stronger impact on Jim than the most expertly honed dirty talk. Arousal slammed into him with the force of an Orion love drug. "I've got stuff to make it easier," he said, pointing vaguely in the direction of his bedside drawer, looking at the body before him and desperately wishing for the clothes on it to just disappear. And those on his own as well, while he was at it. "And I like it a little rough," he added hopefully, increasingly breathless.

"You don't understand." Khan reversed his grip on Jim's shoulders and pulled him close against that perfect body, arms tightening around Jim, letting him feel a mere fraction of his strength and the full force of his arousal. He was rock hard already, pulsing between them with each strong beat of his heart. "Fact of Augment biology. I won't be able to stop until I'm spent. And I... wasn't made for gentleness." He said that last bit with his face buried against Jim's neck, his breath hot against the skin.

Jim shivered, almost unable to breathe, from the force of Khan's arms around him, from sheer arousal, and from an unexpected wave of sudden affection that inundated him. "Get out of your clothes before you squish me," he forced out, "and let me take the edge off."

With a groan, Khan wrenched himself away, hands going straight for the fly of his pants. "You do like playing with fire."

"I was named after a Roman emperor," Jim grinned as if that explained everything, watching the show for a bit before remembering that he should get rid of his clothes as well if this was supposed to work.

Then the work of art he had seen once before was again revealed to his hungry eyes, this time sporting an impressive erection. Jim felt his mouth water, but he regretfully put any thought of blow jobs on the back burner. It wasn't that he didn't trust Khan, but, knowing what he could do, having just felt the strength of those arms and seen the wild look in those blue-green eyes, he decided that he wanted to enjoy this without the fear of accidentally getting choked spoiling the fun.

Before Khan could warn him off again, Jim stepped close and proceeded to wrap his hand around the hot flesh. It pulsed in response, steel covered in velvet, already leaking copiously, and Khan groaned, letting his head fall back, mouth open, teeth bared.

The pose, submissive and predatory at the same time, aroused Jim fiercely. He found himself wanting to draw this out, enjoy it to the full, so he moved his hand slowly, more slowly than he himself would have liked, spreading the precum that flowed in slow bursts from the head.

Before he could find a rhythm, his hand was covered by Khan's larger one and moved faster. "Don't tease," the Augment growled, his voice so deep that Jim could practically feel it vibrate in his diaphragm. "I already want you more than I can stand."

"Okay, okay," Jim said soothingly, deciding that the look in Khan's eyes was a warning he should probably take seriously. He actively let his fingers stroke more rapidly, applying more pressure, creating more friction and promptly eliciting another groan from Khan, this one higher and longer.

God, he was sexy like that. And approaching his climax already, judging from the urgent way his hips began to move, fucking the hand that aroused him, his balls twitching, swollen, drawing up to his body.

Jim wanted to hear that moan again. He was so turned on by now that he was sure that just hearing that sound from Khan again would be all it would take to make him release. His fingers on the hot, wet flesh found all the spots he himself liked; along the ridged underside, underneath and over the head, sliding easily by now, lube unnecessary with all the precum.

And there it was, another long moan, sounding as if it was torn out of Khan; his buttocks flexing, hips pumping, almost losing his balance as his climax hit, moan turning into a shout with the force of it.

Jim felt himself once again getting caught by inhumanly strong arms and crushed against the Augment's chest, his hand holding the pulsing flesh trapped between them, his own orgasm hitting without the slightest touch (and when was the last time that had happened?), and still, Khan kept coming, coating them both with his seed, shuddering and delightfully vocal in his pleasure.

When his climax finally abated, Khan made another sound, deep and sustained and almost a purr, and, his arms still around Jim, walked them both to the bed, tumbling them onto the mattress without letting go and pulling Jim in close in a full-body hug, messy and trembling and oh so good.

Jim allowed himself to manhandled, unwilling - and probably even unable if he had tried - to interfere with this unexpected need for closeness. He could feel, from where Khan was pressed up against him, that the Augment was far from satisfied, his organ never completely deflating.

One of Khan's hands found Jim's member, limp again due to his own recent climax, and it seemed to wake the Augment from his post-orgasmic haze enough to raise his head and look at Jim quizzically.

Jim shrugged. "It's been a long time for me as well. You swept me along, you force of nature, you."

Khan smiled, eyes closing.

Jim looked at his face, took in the unusual bone structure, the slanted eyes, the languid expression, then leaned in and touched his lips to Khan's. The perfect mouth opened readily underneath his, allowing Jim's tongue access, letting Jim drown in the taste of him. Jim felt himself twitch in a valiant effort to get with the program, but it was still too soon.

This didn't seem to be a problem for Khan, who was stretching against Jim without breaking the kiss, all sinew and muscle, his organ growing fully hard again.

 _Damn_ , Jim thought, _he really is better at everything._ He reached out to his bedside drawer and found the lube, dropping it onto Khan's flat belly. "Here. It's been a while, and you're really big, but I think I can manage."

Hazy eyes opened. "Don't want to hurt you." Khan reached out and pulled Jim on top of him, pushing and pulling at his limbs until Jim sat astride his hips. "Like this." He sounded almost drugged.

Jim smiled at him, amused. Drunk on endorphins. "Want me to do all the work, huh?"

Khan nodded. "Don't want to hurt you," he repeated, in case Jim hadn't gotten it the first time, putting the lube into Jim's hand and raising his arms up above his head, experimentally grabbing the head board, eyes closing again as if keeping them open was too much effort.

Overcome with another sudden burst of affection, Jim leaned forward and kissed him again. "You're really cute like this, you know that?"

A deep growl was his reply, arms wrapping about him, pulling him down and in tight until Jim felt the air escape from his lungs. "Don't call me that, and get on with it."

"Oof! Alright, alright!" He strained against the hold, not really afraid but rather feeling deliciously helpless, which sparked something deep within him. The arms loosened only after a moment, and Jim sat up again, raising up to prepare himself. Stretching himself carefully and thoroughly, he watched Khan watch him with slitted eyes. The temptation was great to make a show of it, but the hard, erect flesh pulsing against his buttocks and the way the Augment was moving restlessly beneath him informed him that that would be a bad idea. "I guess nobody has introduced you to slow and easy yet, huh?"

Khan raised his eyes up to Jim's. They were almost completely unfocused. "Not... made for gentleness," he repeated his earlier words, his usual precise diction now almost completely lost. He was about to add something, but Jim had decided that he was as ready as he would ever be and took hold of Khan's engorged flesh, and all that emerged was a moan. Eyes closing, Khan stretched his arms up, grabbing the headboard and holding on, keeping his hands - hands that could kill - well away from Jim.

The urgency vibrating from every sinew of Khan's body, despite his recent climax, again worked its sympathetic magic on Jim's own libido. Arousal began to build as he slowly lowered himself, knowing what it must be doing to the Augment. Still, the stretch and the resulting burn were immense. Repeatedly, Jim had to stop and wait for his body to adjust, which was not helped by the tortured sounds Khan was making as he fought to hold himself still against an increasingly overwhelming urge to thrust and _take_.

But finally, Jim thought he was ready, completely impaled on the hot, hard column that he could now feel twitch inside him. He raised up experimentally, the engorged flesh within his body dragging along the stretched channel, eliciting a spark of pleasure from his prostate and a howl from Khan, and then the Augment's hips were out of control, rutting underneath him like pistons. For a moment, Jim saw stars.

He must have made some sound as well, because Khan slowed and actually managed to stop his movements, groaning as if in pain, his eyes opening, the headboard creaking in the death grip of his hands. "Are you... hurt...?"

"Don't think so," Jim panted. _It's actually hurting him to stop._ "I'm fine. Keep going. Don't worry. It's good."

A world of doubt lay in Khan's eyes, but even his willpower was unable to keep the biological imperative to move at bay any longer, and Jim simply was along for the ride.

There was some pain, yes, but Jim knew that he could rise above it, surf it like a wave. All that was required was a little push, and Jim was very good at providing himself that push. It would not be a good idea to do it for real, not now, but the mere thought of being subjected to this relentless, almost mindless pounding while being tied up and unable to escape, maybe even gagged to prevent begging...

_Khan would stalk him, grab him, throw him onto the bed to land on his back, tie his arms and bend his legs over against his chest, exposing him, then tying him in that vulnerable position, growling and moaning the way he was now with how much he needed Jim, and then he would just take him, unable to stop himself or even to go slow, and Jim would just have to take it, orgasm after orgasm forced out of him while Khan simply kept going, coming inside him over and over, filling him up with his seed..._

The imagery, combined with the constant stimulation of his prostate and the view on Khan, stretched out underneath him, muscles thrown into high relief as he held his arms still, throat bared and thrusting inexorably, helpless to stop his own movements, finally did its job. The pain transformed into pleasure, lighting him up from inside, lifting him outside of himself. All too soon, his orgasm tore through him, less urgent and yet somehow more intense this second time, triggering Khan's release, which was just as spectacular as it had been the first one.

Caught in the throes of his climax, Khan reared up, catching Jim in his arms, and rolled them both over without losing his place inside Jim. His hold was unbreakable but fortunately not too tight as he continued to move in what seemed to be aftershocks of pleasure that went on and on, kept going by each small movement either of them made, his face buried in Jim's neck, making soft mewling noises.

By now, Jim was oversensitive; he knew that, for him, that was it for the night. "Hey, Noonien," he said, straining against the inexorable hold, "a little air?"

Khan raised his head to look at Jim out of unfocused eyes, still moving fitfully. Then he blinked, and blinked again, and a little awareness returned. Deliberately slowing and finally stopping his restless movements, he loosed the hold of his arms and withdrew gradually, his flesh still engorged, then pulling Jim back into his arms and pressed his hips and swollen organ against Jim's as if unable to exist without touching him. "Need you," he slurred.

"What, again?" Jim blurted.

"Still," came the response after a long moment. "Can't stop. Need you." He was already moving again, fitfully. Jim could actually feel his balls swelling, filling again, the hardening cock twitching.

Jim threaded his hand between their tightly-pressed bodies, wanting to provide more stimulation, but Khan, apparently realizing his intention, raised his head. "No. Not like this. I'll crush you." He actually tried to stop his movements, groaning with frustrated need.

"I'm not made of glass," Jim objected. He could see how it was hurting the Augment to hold himself back, even if he did not quite understand why and how.

Khan managed to let go of Jim; lying on his side, his hands found the headboard again. He was panting, face contorted as if in pain. "You're... human... So delicate... Might kill you without even noticing. Would never forgive myself. Please. Like this. Touch me like this."

And Jim did; one hand holding and stroking the twitching, needful flesh, his other arm holding and stroking the trembling Augment who lay stretched out, not daring to touch Jim even though it was obvious that every cell of his body was screaming for contact.

Jim's roaming hand found the flexing buttocks, and he grabbed him there, urging him on, and wondering if anyone had, ever... Lube was available, maybe he could get one finger inside...?

Before he could make a decision, though, Khan sped up, approaching his orgasm for the third time, and froze in ecstasy, again coming copiously in sharp bursts that went on and on while he gave that drawn-out moan that made Jim want to go again, despite everything. Gently, he coninued to stroke and pull on the coming organ, milking it, until, at last, the Augment was spent. And this time, his need seemed satisfied, his organ finally softening.

Jim was caught against Khan's chest, tightly muscled arms wrapping around him as the Augment again enfolded him, pulling him in and surrounding him with with his body and his scent, at once familiarly human and enticingly other.

"God, you smell good," Jim said, or thought he said. He was sexed out. Sleep beckoned. They were incredibly messy, but he didn't care. He was warm, relaxed, his nerves still tingled with afterglow, and Khan was stroking his back and making deep humming sounds that were positively soporific.

Caught on the cusp of sleep, Jim felt some sort of shift, as if a constant sound just at the edge of hearing had stopped. Opening one eye (the other one was squashed into Khan's shoulder), he could see the Augment lying next to him, now motionless, his soft hums tapering off, relaxed, eyes closed. The wariness that had constantly been there before gone. For the first time since Jim had known him, Khan appeared to be completely at ease.

Trusting him. Trusting him enough to allow himself to relax, maybe even fall asleep next to him. It made Jim's eyes sting and his breath catch in his throat.

He did not want to miss even one second of this, so he fought to keep his eyes open and his senses attuned. But he had only just begun to appreciate the arch of Khan's eyebrow and the dark fan of lashes against his pale cheek when the lids rose and those aquamarine eyes opened to focus on his.

Returning Jim's glance, fully awake and aware from one second to the next. "What?" Khan said softly. Battle-ready, immediately.

 _He sensed me looking at him,_ Jim realized regretfully, _and it woke him up._ "Nothing. Sorry. Didn't mean to wake you. Go back to sleep."

The Augment looked away, apparently listening, then shrugged minutely and closed his eyes.

Jim lay motionless, keeping his breathing slow and steady, trying not to appear awake at all, pointedly not looking at him. Waiting. Hoping Khan would be able to relax again.

"What are you doing?" came Khan's voice after a while.

Jim sighed. "How can you tell I'm not asleep?"

Khan shifted, rolling onto his side, one arm still around Jim's shoulders. "I can hear it, smell it. You're too quiet, like a lurking predator waiting for a chance to pounce. And your body chemistry says 'I'm alert'."

Also shifting to get more comfortable, Jim ran his hands up and down what he could reach of the body he had coveted for so long, feeling unblemished skin where, only hours ago, skin and flesh had been torn open. "Sorry," he said again. "For the record, I'm not lurking. I'm just watching you. I don't think I've ever seen you truly relaxed."

"I am relaxed."

"You were before, for like two seconds, but you aren't now. You're not even relaxed enough to go back to sleep, even though you just had three orgasms that looked mind-blowing."

As if to prove Jim wrong, Khan closed his eyes and went limp, his head finding a place in the crook of Jim's neck and shoulder. But still, Jim thought he could feel some tiny remaining tension, like a guard light, ready to flare up to full fight-or-flight mode at a moment's notice.

He waited, but that elusive lessening he had felt before did not happen again. _Maybe it's me. Maybe he simply can't be completely at ease if someone else is present, even me, and before was a fluke._

The thought was sobering, which was why Jim pushed it away in favor of a much happier one.

_Here I am, lying in bed with a man who tried to kill me last year and who I may possibly, probably be in love with, and who maybe possibly feels something for me too. I've just been thoroughly fucked. It's looking likely that I'll get fucked again in the future. And he's a snuggler. I'd never have pegged him for a snuggler._

"You're still not sleeping," Khan's deep voice broke into his thoughts. "Want to go again?" It was impossible to tell whether that sounded hopeful or off-putting.

Jim decided not to second-guess the Augment and to just answer the question. He took stock of his body. There was a spark of warmth in there that he supposed could be fanned into something more, but the dull, burning sensation in his ass was probably something he shouldn't ignore. Besides, what if Khan wanted to go more than once more? He definitely wasn't up for that. "Want to, but shouldn't," he admitted.

That immediately made Khan raise his head and peer at him out of narrowed eyes. "Are you hurt?" A kaleidoscope of feelings lay in his voice - worry, remorse, protectiveness -, and Jim wondered how he could ever have considered the Augment's intonation flat or monotone. He obviously was a being of strong emotions, which showed in his actions as well as in his voice once you knew what to look for.

He smiled in what he hoped was a reassuring way. "Just a little sore. Don't worry, you didn't break anything."

"I can smell you're at least not bleeding. This time. I have so little control when I am in that state, though, and you're so fragile, that it's merely a matter of time before I do hurt you enough to bleed." Khan put his head back down.

"I'm not that fragile," Jim said, bristling a little. "Besides, I told you I like it a little rough. And it's... really hot to see you like that. So out of control."

A soft snort. "Because it makes me more human?"

Jim chuckled. "That's not the way I'd describe it, no. You're more like... the sea, coming in. Powerful and ungovernable. Like an ion storm, only more sleek. More beautiful. And more contained."

"You should have been a poet. A warrior-poet."

"Heh, no. It's just really hard to describe. I like 'force of nature', though, so I'm sticking with that."

They were silent for a minute. Jim listened to Khan's breathing, slow and even, with long pauses between each exhalation and the next inhalation. _Efficient Augment lungs at work._ It was a calming sound, and Jim found himself nearing sleep again.

"I'm glad it was your ship that found me," Khan said into the near silence.

Jim smiled, keeping his eyes closed. "So am I." A thought struck, chasing his drowsiness away. "What would you have done if it had been the Bradbury, or a Section 31 ship?"

"My original plan was to have a Section 31 ship find me." Khan's hand found Jim's hair and slipped inside, stroking softly, belying his words that he was not made for gentleness. Still, Jim felt a thrill at the thought that the Augment could probably snap his neck from this position - a scaring and exciting thought. "I had left them clues as to my position in the transwarp beaming device I built. I had planned to let myself get captured, take over the vessel, kill or maroon the crew and lose myself in deep space."

"You were in no shape to do that, Noonien," Jim said, holding him closer, remembering the emaciated Augment they had found who had literally been too weak to survive being transported aboard the ship.

"True. I had underestimated the effect transwarp beaming would have on me, and overestimated the time it would take them to get to me."

"So much for being perfect."

"I never said I was perfect," Khan said levelly, "only better. Besides, there was plan B. There is always plan B."

"What's plan B?"

"Die in battle, taking out as many as I can."

Now, that was another sobering thought Jim didn't want to be thinking. "I've got a better idea," he said brightly. "Let's make that plan C, or even plan Z. Plan B, from now on, is come to your friends for help."

There was a pause. "Letting others fight my battles for me is not what I was made for."

"They wouldn't be your battles," Jim said, warming to his subject. "They'll be our battles. Together. Don't tell me you're made to be nothing but a lone wolf, because I know you're not. You fought for your family. I bet they'd have fought for you. You can have that again, here."

Another pause and a deep breath. "Don't make me offers you can't keep."

"I'm already keeping it. You helped us fight our battle today. If anyone from Section 31 came back to haunt you, I would be there, like I have been before. After today, my crew would be there for you as well."

Khan was silent. His breathing sounded uneven now.

Jim pushed himself up on one elbow and caught a glimpse of the Augment's closed eyes wet with leaking moisture just before Khan turned his face away. "Don't," Jim said gently, putting one hand on one cheek to keep it there. "I've already got enough to deal with Spock hiding his feelings from me."

"You don't understand the magnitude of this," Khan said, eyes still closed but no longer turning his face away.

"I think I do. If you can accept it, if you allow yourself to want this, then your lifelong war would be over. I understand what that means."

"I was made for war." He sounded almost desperate.

Jim smiled sadly. He thought he could understand that, too: the conflict of wanting something but being afraid of losing your purpose by the very act of getting that something. "You said you were made for leading others to peace. There's plenty of conflict out there. You can be an instrument for peace, do what you were made for, out there. With us."

Again, Khan did not reply.

Jim turned his head to look at him. An inner voice was cautioning him to go slowly. This was monumental, and he really shouldn't push. "Just a thought," he finally said in an attempt to ease off on the pressure.

Khan smiled, finally opening his eyes and looking at Jim. "It's a nice thought, and one I'll be keeping in mind."

And that, Jim thought, was probably all he could ask for at the moment.

 

* * *

 

_Coffee._

Leonard McCoy blinked blearily into the brightly lit officers' mess hall, zeroing in on the food synthesizer with but a single thought in his head.

The synthesizer had someone standing in front of it. "Hi, Jim," Leonard said, or thought he said. He could never be really sure what came out of his mouth this early in the morning and pre-coffee.

Jim extricated his cup from the machine and held it reverently in both hands. "Mornin', Bones," he said, not quite clearly, a kindred spirit.

There was a pause during which Leonard guessed Jim tried to remember what else normally went with breakfast. He used the moment of indecision to cut in with his own urgent need. "Coffee, strong, black, two sugars," he ordered the machine, watching Jim take the first sip of his own brew.

Jim had not even minded being cut off from his turn, Leonard realized.

As soon as he had it, he took a sip of his own coffee in order to get his brain going and looked closer. _Oh._ He knew that look of bleary-eyed bliss. "Had fun last night?" he said with studied casualness, courtesy of the caffeine kick.

Of course, Jim didn't even have the decency to act as if he was embarrassed. "Does it show that much?" Finally deciding that a bowl of cereal would do it, Jim got his food and began to make his way towards an empty table.

Now that he had his coffee, Leonard decided to skip eating anything for breakfast and followed, which afforded him a good view of the way Jim walked. "Uh huh," he commented, grinning.

Jim sat down gingerly, not even trying to hide that, either. "Don't say it, Bones. I'm okay. Just..." He gestured.

"Thoroughly fucked?" Leonard supplied, sitting down opposite.

That got him a grin. "Spectacularly."

He wasn't surprised, especially knowing about Augments the way he was following the talk with Khan. "Better at everything, huh?" Leonard looked around. "Where is he, anyway?"

"I'm not keeping tabs on him," Jim said after taking another sip of coffee. "Sleep is for wimps, apparently. He's been up for hours." He sounded positively besotted.

Leonard, too, had more coffee in order to fortify himself. Jim wasn't going to like what he was about to say. "I want to see you sometime today for a checkup."

Those startlingly blue eyes rose from Jim's cereal to meet his. "Why? I told you I'm fine."

"You'll say I'm fine with your intestines hanging out, Jim. Mr. Singh was kind enough to let me in on a few facts, so I'm aware of the risk you're taking every time the two of you get it on."

"What? When did he do that?"

"Day before yesterday. Came by to get my blessings, sort of, and to tell me without telling me to keep an eye on you once he allowed himself to be seduced by you."

Jim smiled, looking even more besotted. "Really?"

"Called it 'strategizing'," Leonard said, nodding.

"Aww. Wasn't that psychopathic of him."

"Shut up. I can admit when I'm wrong. The point is, I need to do a checkup to make sure. And so I can, I don't know, do something unpleasant to him during his next checkup if he did hurt you."

Jim gave him a look, suddenly very serious.

 _Oops. Too soon._ "Kidding, Jim. Relax."

"You shouldn't even joke about this, Bones."

Leonard raised his hands. "I know. Sorry."

"It's just all so precarious right now, you know. He's still learning to trust us." Leonard had rarely seen him look so earnest, almost imploring.

"Jim." Time for Leonard to do serious. "If you really trust him like you say, then you should learn to trust him not to go ballistic every time someone looks at him funny, or mock-slaps him, or holds a hypo in his face."

Jim continued to look at him tightly.

"I mean, I know you do trust him. You just said that you don't even know where he is right now. He could be sabotaging your ship, or killing somebody down in engineering, or whatever, but you don't believe he is - I don't either, for the record - because you trust him. So trust him one step further, okay? With his psychological and emotional makeup, he's got to have the sort of self control a Vulcan would envy, just to be able to function from day to day. He can handle being given a checkup that hurts a little, not that I would really do such a thing on purpose."

"You were the one who mentioned PTSS," Jim pointed out. "After what happened to him..."

"Jim. I did a checkup on him after you came back from dinosaur land, remember? He had a freshly healed gash along his side that would have put a human in a regenerative coma for at least a couple of days, and he was joking about the dinosaur that did that to him putting the physician at Section 31 to shame. That man has incredible mental and physical resilience. He was literally made to go through all sorts of trauma without getting traumatized. Better, remember? You can stop worrying about him. Seriously."

Jim still did not look convinced. "I just managed to make him cry just by telling him that he has friends that would be there for him. And you saw how he was during the party."

"So he has strong feelings, and can get a little sentimental if you hit on the right subject. Doesn't mean he's in danger of freaking out every time something reminds him of something that happened to him. On the contrary. Shows he's in fact not a psychopath. If he never showed any feelings at all, I'd really be worried."

Jim visibly mulled that over. "Okay," he finally said, "I hear you. I'll try not to worry."

"And you'll come by sometime today," Leonard reminded him.

"That's not necessary, Bones -"

"I'll be the judge of that. Your unlikely boyfriend made sure I would." He shook his head. "He really seems to love you, constructing a safety net to protect you from him like that. He knows I'll drag him over hot coals if he hurts you, and he went out of his way to let me know that I have a reason to worry."

"I know," Jim said, smiling, then looking towards the door and smiling even more widely.

And, sure enough, when Leonard turned around to see what Jim had seen, Khan was approaching their table, accompanied by Spock, of all people. Leonard was not sure he was caffeinated enough to deal with an ex-tyrant and a hobgoblin at the same time, but, short of making a hasty and rather rude exit, he supposed he would just have to grin and bear it.

They seemed to be talking about chess, of all things. _Great,_ Leonard thought, _first they're bonding over their worry about Jim and then over strategic board games. Next step: ganging on up a certain old country doctor._

But if he was honest with himself, he was looking forward to it. To all of it.

It was certainly going to be an interesting five year mission.


End file.
